John pulled at his tie, noting Anna's eyebrow raise from where she leaned against the wall with her arms folded, and then turned back to the too-shiny car spinning up dust on the gravel drive. It parked next to his and the equally shiny shoes exited the car before a man in a tailored suit exited with an attaché case. He sniffed and then turned toward the house before plastering one of the largest smiles John had ever seen over his face.

"Mr. Bates," He extended his hand and John shook it, noting the firm grip that threatened to crush the small bones in his hand. "I'm Mr. Barrow. I believe Mr. Green told you to expect me."

"He informed me he had an appraiser." John extricated his hand, waving back at Anna before massaging it as nonchalantly as he could manage. "I'm sure you know Ms. Smith, my manager."

"We've met." Mr. Barrow took the stairs, holding out his hand to Anna. "How've you been Ms. Smith?"

"Well enough." She did not take his hand, opting to open the door instead, "Would you like to come in, Thomas?"

"Don't mind if I do." He stepped inside and as John went to follow Anna grabbed his arm.

"He's going to try and take you for all you're worth. Don't let him."

"That's why you're here." John nodded inside, "The land's partially yours and your opinion weighs heavily on this decision."

Anna's eyes widened but she followed Mr. Barrow inside and eventually led the trio to the study where the raised map of the land and pointer were waiting. Mr. Barrow laughed, pointing to it.

"Is this what you show the children?"

"It's comprehensive and'll have to do since you're obviously not dressed for an actual tour." Anna managed, working a tight smile onto her face as she turned to John. "Unless you've objections to the venue, Mr. Bates."

"I think Ms. Smith's right about your wear, Mr. Barrow, and we'll have to deal with what's available given the circumstances."

"Right," Barrow nodded, eyeing Anna, and then facing John as if she was not there. "This is a professional conversation, between businessmen, and I believe Ms. Smith might be a bit out of her element here."

"That's where you're wrong, Mr. Barrow. This is Ms. Smith's element and I need her here in an advisory capacity since I'm new to all of this."

"Oh," John tried not to react to the twinkle in Barrow's eye. "What is it you do, Mr. Bates? Other than run this ranch, obviously."

"I own a management firm. We invest and diversify to a few different companies but the largest we own is a publishing firm."

"Have you published anything I've heard of?"

"Did you happen to read the ALICEtrilogy or Morgan?"

"Can't say I did."

"Well," John shrugged, "I guess you can get the movies when the films get released next year."

"Impressive." Barrow nodded, "But I guess the land in front of us is what we're here to appraise."

"I'm still curious how you intend to appraise the property dressed like you're about to step into a completely different kind of meeting." Anna crossed her arms over her chest. "Can you really appraise the land you haven't seen for yourself?"

"But I have seen it, Ms. Smith." Barrow opened his attaché case and pulled out a stack of satellite photos. John pulled them closer as Barrow explained. "We used a drone and some of our people taking the stock of the edge of your property."

"With permission from the owners of the adjacent properties I'm sure." Anna suggested, taking a few of the photos for herself, going through them with her eyes darting all over the images as if she could read them like a bank statement. "These are only two days old."

"We've been investigating the property for some time, as you well know Ms. Smith, and Mr. Green doesn't make an offer on a property he's never seen."

"Because Mrs. Bates wouldn't let his scrawny ass within ten feet of her drive with his pittance of an offer." Anna tossed the photos back on the model of the property. "I'm sure you're here to try and convince Mr. Bates the offer was a good one."

"It was more than she paid for the property."

"You've not accounted for tall the work she put into revamping this place." Anna gestured to the lodge around them. "This place alone would make your offer laughable at best, an insult at worst."

"That's not up to you." Barrow sneered at her, turning to John as he finished his pile of photos and replaced them. "Mr. Green would like to offer-"

"What about the hot springs?" John clapped his hands together and Barrow faltered.

"I'm sorry, that what?"

"The hot springs." John waited, "They were the last property Mr. Green purchased. What happened to them?"

"We're still working on that investment. Mr. Green's been developing the surrounding area and-"

"How does he define 'development', Mr. Barrow?" John waited but Barrow could only flounder for words. "You see, Mr. Barrow, I may not know much about the business of running this ranch but I do know business. I know acquisitions and I know that Mr. Green has been plying my mother's solicitor for quite some time to see if he could convince her to sell up. Now, I'm sure Mr. Green thought that prudence and pragmatic behavior would rule out and I'd sell this land without a second thought but I'm a business man and that's not what you do to an investment."

John walked over to the desk, pulling out a few spreadsheets. "These tell me that if I keep Greener Pastures as it is, trusting to the care and direction of Ms. Smith here, I'll make more than double what the cost of running it is. Now I would've been satisfied to break even with a place like this but those numbers are tempting." Setting the pages down he turned to Barrow, "Can Mr. Green offer me more than double the yearly earnings on this place as his offer?"

"I couldn't say."

John frowned, "Then what kind of offer are you-?"

"As Mr. Green's appraiser I'm only here to tell you how I could price out cost of this property, nothing more." Barrow pointed to the photographs. "From what I've seen of those, Mr. Bates, I don't think your Ms. Smith is being entirely honest with you."

"Really? And why would she lie?"

'Job security is hard to find when you've not got many skills." Barrow smiled in a grimace and John swallowed hard.

"I'm sure you think something of yourself, Mr. Barrow, in your suit but I'm not selling this place to a man who'll raze it to the ground to build a ski resort or a summer retreat for the rich and spoiled." John gathered the photographs. "And I'll not stand to have you insult my manager like that."

"Mr. Bates, I think you misunderstand me when I said-"

"The only misunderstanding here, Mr. Barrow, is that Mr. Green's offer is being entertained." John handed the photos back. "I hope you enjoy your drive back to town. Thank Mr. Green for his interest but tell him we're not interested in selling."

Barrow took the photographs back, mouth moving as if stunned by their presence in his hands. His mouth gaped like a fish struggling for air for a moment before he found the words he wanted. "Mr. Bates, I think you're rushing into a decision without realizing the facts or the ramifications of your choice."

"And I think you would've impressed me more if you'd shown up dressed to actually appraise this property." John opened the door, "Allow me to show you out."

John waited until Barrow gathered all of his things and huffed his way out of the house. He reached his car, pointing a finger back at John. "I can promise you, Mr. Bates, you won't get an offer like this one again."

"I can only hope the next offer isn't nearly as insulting to my wallet or my intelligence." John waved a hand, "It was a pleasure meeting you Mr. Barrow. Please give my best to Mr. Green."

Barrow stuffed himself into his car and spit gravel as he peeled out of the drive to leave in a cloud of dust. John waved it away, shaking his head, and pivoted to see Anna at the top of the stairs. They stared at one another as Anna descended the stairs so they stood equal with one another.

"Thank you."

"I didn't really-"

"But you did, Mr. Bates." Anna reached out a hand, retracting it a moment but John caught it, holding tightly to it.

He looked down at her hand, "I couldn't bear to hear him insult you. Not after the way you talked about this place."

"And I heard how you talked about this place." Anna smiled, slipping her fingers through his. "It's the same passion your mother used to use when she talked about it."

"I can't imagine a better compliment than that."

"Then you underestimate yourself, Mr. Bates." Anna took a breath, "When I said I feel like I've known you for a long time, it wasn't just because of what I'd heard."

"So not because of my mother?"

"Not entirely," Anna let their hands drop. "It's more than words could really say."

"Is it?" John whispered, the sounds of the land around them seeming to deaden until all he could hear was her voice and the beat of his heart in his chest.

She reached up a hand to help a lock of hair leave his forehead. "Yes and it's surprising since your mother often had a lot to say and words don't often fail me."

"Words don't fail you?"

"Not often." Anna's face set and she searched his. "Everything she told me about you was honest and I knew that's why you'd like this place."

"Really?"

"Really." Anna motioned toward the dissipating cloud of dust. "What you told Mr. Barrow just confirmed it."

"Because I sent him away?"

"Because you knew he didn't care about this place. For all the talk about understanding a business model or being a businessman you've got to understand more than that. It's got to be deeper and you saw how much he didn't care." Anna stopped herself, "And I saw how much you cared."

"Not as much as you."

"It didn't have to be as much as me. It just had to be enough." Anna looked toward the barn, "I've got to finish some things and I think you've got a call to your solicitor to worry about."

"I do." John forced himself away. "I've just… I have some business I've got to handle."

"If you need anything, pick up a phone and call." Anna winked at him and walked toward the stables.

John returned to his rooms, pulling his laptop and phone close. But he could barely manage any work. The emails all jumbled and he could not string a coherent thought together long enough to actually find what he wanted to say. And when he tried to read through reports or other emails they fuzzed and blurred before his eyes.

Pushing back from his desk, John rubbed at his eyes and took a few deep breaths. When he brought his head up he blinked. The darkness outside seemed to permeate his room but when John stood he noticed the light on his computer charger was out. He managed his way around the bed and tried to flip the switch but it only clicked uselessly.

John worked back to the desk, closing his laptop and grabbing his phone before activating the flashlight mode. Guiding himself through the room and then the house, John tramped toward the stables where he saw a light moving around the upper levels. He grabbed the sides of the ladder and ascended to the attic space there.

Anna turned, almost blinding him with the torch in her hands, and John raised his own to try and diffuse the light. "I'm so sorry."

"It's fine." John blinked past the lights sparking in his vision as Anna lowered the industrial torch. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Anna shrugged, "I think the city's doing work with a transformer down by the road."

"Did they warn you or-"

"I saw them when I was doing some work down there." Anna shrugged, "It's happened before but last time it was -"

The dark sky cracked and then a crash of thunder alerted them to the sudden downpour that pelted the roof. Anna sighed, her shoulders dropping. "That's going to turn those trails to mud."

"Sorry."

"It's not your fault unless you're Zeus." Anna grabbed something else and handed it to John. It'll work better than that impotent little light."

"I don't think that's something I've ever been called before." John turned off the light and tucked his phone away before taking the large torch Anna handed him. Their fingers met and John stopped, meeting Anna's eyes in the strangely white glow of her light. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"It's just a little dark, Mr. Bates." She did not stop staring at him. "I'm sure you're not scared of the dark."

"Terrified of it."

"Really?" Her breath caught as John stepped closer to her, his fingers tentative but determined as they brushed the loose strands of hair back from her face. "Seems odd."

"Because I'm a big strong man?"

"No," She whispered as John lowered his head toward hers. "Because you're the kind of person that says they are the storm."

"Only sometimes." His hand held along the perfect line of her jaw, running his thumb along her cheekbone to feel the slight shudder there. "Other times I hide."

"Why?"

"Because I'm not the person I need to be to face it. Not yet."

"When will you be that person?"

"When I take the courage I need to kiss you for the first time."

"Please." Anna's torch dropped to the floor and her hands came to the back of his neck to pull him closer to her so their lips could finally meet.

The sensation of her lips on his was almost more than John could handle. He stumbled slightly backward, hand flailing until he found a chair. They landed hard but Anna only used the chance to straddle his legs and push herself up to kiss him from her superior position.

John reveled in the feel of her mouth against him, nipping and licking along her lips until he could sneak his tongue between her teeth. She used her hands on his face as leverage as she sucked at his tongue and then tangled it with her own. He put his other hand on her hip and then broke the kiss for a moment.

"What?" Anna struggled for breath and, even in the odd lighting from the dropped torches, John could see the flush to her cheeks and the dilation of her pupils. "What's wrong?"

"I just want to make sure this is what you want."

"I wouldn't be sitting on your lap if I didn't." Anna grinned at him, sliding her fingers over the skin of his face. "I promise you, Mr. Bates, this is something I very much want."

"Because you've already known me for a long time?"

"Partly." Anna lowered her mouth so her next words brushed against his lips. "Mostly because you came all the way up here to see if I was alright with that shitty little flashlight."

"That did it for you?"

"Your kissing doesn't hurt either." Anna ran her lips over his cheek and toward his ear, "May we continue?"

"I think we should." John shifted to bring their mouths together again.

His hand moved toward her hair, brushing down the secure plait to trail over her back. He heard the chair squeak and gripped at her ass to keep her steady. Anna just moaned at the motion and tightened her knees near his hips to hold tighter to him. It forced her closer to where John rose to the occasion and he groaned into her mouth.

Anna grinned against his lips, breaking from the kiss to leave a dotting of quick pecks over his face as John dug his fingers into her ass. Their jeans scraped against one another and John huffed as he tried to bring her closer to him. They moved together and John tipped the chair slightly to try and get leverage.

She ground down on him and John moved his hand from her hip toward her breasts. He hesitated for only a moment until Anna grabbed his wrist and placed his hand where she wanted. John surprised himself with a growl as his fingers massaged the delicate offering through her shirt and the bra there but his lips took their own matching journey over her availably exposed skin to listen to her moans.

They went to move further when three things happened very quickly. The first was a crack of lightning that illuminated the whole building. The second was the lights coming back on as a rumble of thunder sounded so close it drown out everything else. The third was the chair slipping and dumping the two of them backward so Anna landed on John's chest as his back hit the floor almost hard enough to drive the air from his lungs.

Staring up at Anna, John started to laugh. She joined him, putting her forehead on his chest and they rocked and laughed together. Anna eased herself away, giving John a hand before picking up her torch and flipping the switch on it.

"I do hope another strike doesn't ruin the noble efforts of our electricians." Anna picked up the other torch and handed it over to John. "Just in case."

"I was hoping…" John maneuvered it, "I don't know."

"What?"

"I was kind of hoping we could stay like that a bit longer."

"Believe me, I'd like nothing more." Anna kissed his cheek, "But there's a few more things I've got to do now that the rain's set in."

"I could help you."

"Would you? It always goes faster with two."

John followed her about, despite the heavy rain, and they managed to get the rest of the chores completed. But the muddy pastures and ground left their mark over them and John spit mud to the side as they hung up the last of the tools. "I think I need a shower."

"Not to offend or risk stepping out of place," Anna pointed to herself and then John, "But we're not stepping in that house looking as we do."

"The showers are inside."

"I've got a couple camp showers for just this reason." Anna motioned for him to follow to a set of stairs walking up to a balcony on the side of the barn. There a row of spigots hung above a large tub.

John pointed through the boards at it. "What's that?"

"I use it for the irrigation water and the sprinklers." Anna kicked off her boots and undid the buttons on her shirt as John just stared, rain drizzling off now. "What?"

"We're showering out here… together?"

"I can shut my eyes if you get nervous." Anna laughed, flinging her shirt to the side before starting on her trousers so all John could focus on was the bra and her exposed torso. "Come on. You're not going into that house muddy as you are."

"Right." John swallowed and kicked his borrowed Wellingtons to the side and fumbled with his shirt.

Her fingers slid over his and John let his hang uselessly at his side as Anna pulled each button loose. Rain tracked a path through her hair, down her face, and dripped onto her almost entirely exposed body. John swallowed hard as she opened his shirt and then pulled each of his arms toward her to let the cuffs loose.

The wet shirt dropped to the boards in a sodden heap as Anna let her fingers trace around his abdomen just above his belt. She looked up at him, squinting against the rain. "Do you still need help?"

"Yes." John breathed and Anna smiled as she pulled his belt loose and snaked it back through the loops. The metal buckle clattered off the side of the barn and Anna skirted just under the edge of his jeans, listening to the hitch in his voice. She pried the button on his jeans loose and worked the zipper down a bit before sneaking a swipe at his erection.

John stuttered, throwing a hand to the side to catch himself, and caught Anna's grin. In that moment he found his primal instinct and grabbed both of her wrists. He hauled Anna up, turning them just enough to put her back to the shower wall, and seized control of her mouth. Her legs wrapped around his hips and she ground against him as John ravaged her mouth with all the finesse of a drowning man gasping for air.

Anna's hands clung at his arms and this shoulders before gripping at his hair. It tugged and set all of John's nerves on fire. He responded by slanting his mouth over hers with more force and moving a hand to her breast. She shifted on him, rolling her hips into his helpless thrusts, and arched her back to offer more to him.

He left her lips, turning his attentions to her throat and then up to her ear. Nipping there, licking a trail back to her jaw, and increasing his savage caresses of her breasts had Anna moaning to the rain. One of her hands left the confident clutch of his hair to work down and tried to fight John's jeans and boxers lower.

With a bit of shimmying he did not want to think about for too long, John managed to get them out of the way and pulled Anna's legs open. Her knickers still blocked him but he thrust forward all the same, sliding against the material and using it to excite her nerves, and Anna forced his head up to return attention to her mouth. They moved on one another, using their clothing as weapons and toys to drive both to distraction until John broke the kiss.

"Protection?" He managed, gritting his teeth.

"Yes. Clean?"

"Yes." John set a series of burning and sucking kisses down to Anna's pulse and then back to her lips. "May I?"

"Please."

John gave her breasts one last squeeze as he held Anna's thigh hard enough to bruise, and used his other hand to pull her knickers to one side. The second it took him to align them was agony but then John drove forward and both of them stopped breathing. He rested his head on her shoulder as he tried to fill his lungs to even half capacity and shifted slowly against her to seat himself as fully inside her as he could manage. When he reached that point John stopped.

Tipping her head back with a gentle hand, John looked Anna in the eyes and waited. She nodded and then he pulled to the very edge before driving back where she waited. Anna's head knocked against the boards and she let out a whimpering moan that sounded like his name. John adjusted and drove in again, maneuvering his hips just enough to strike where the material of her knickers added a scraping rub against her nerves.

Her fingernails dug into his skin, even for as short as they were, and John moved with the level of scoring to his flesh. Each deep drive set a sound from the back of Anna's throat he could not replicate if he tried and his faster, shallower strokes had her writhing against him or pressing their foreheads together as she struggled to keep her eyes open. Her own fingers snaked between them and John grunted when her efforts to use her knickers to bring herself over the edge dragged the material over his skin.

Anna found another grip at his ass, spreading her legs wide enough to wrap over his waist and then dragging him to her. She set her shoulders back enough to leave John striking right at her clit and within minutes she tumbled over the edge. John reseated himself, using his renewed grip to fight the burn in his arms, and rutted against her until he came.

They slumped a bit, rain slickening the floor and their own lack of energy stopping both their hearts for a moment, but John waited until Anna moved a leg to set her on the floor. Unwrapping from one another, John motioned to the shower and then to himself. "Is it worth it at this point?"

"Just a rinse." Anna put her hand to the wall and turned the spigot to drench herself- knickers, bra, and all- before stepping back.

John shucked his jeans and pulled his boxers back in place to take a dip through the frigid water. Anna shut it off and gathered their wet clothes in her hands before getting her feet back into the Wellingtons. He laughed, getting his own things and pointing at her.

"You're going to dash back to the lodge dressed like that?"

Anna surveyed herself, in her underwear and the boots, and then shrugged. "It's better than sprinting back naked, which I have done."

"Why?"

"Fire ants." Anna jerked her head, "Come on, before you freeze out here."

They got back to the house, leaving the boots in the mudroom, and carrying their dirty clothes to the wash. There Anna dropped hers in the machine and stepped to the side for John to the do the same with his. He hesitated, dropping the ones in his hand and then reaching for his boxers. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Anna make a thing of covering her eyes to preserve his modesty.

John laughed, leaving them in the machine, and then drew her hands away from her eyes. "If you want to look then I won't say no."

"Fair is fair." Anna put her hands behind her back and unclipped her bra to drop it into the machine. John's mouth went dry and he thought the heat in his cheeks would be the last of the blood left near his brain. When Anna worked her knickers off and dropped them into the machine John's brain short-circuited.

"Anna?" He cleared his throat, the first attempt at speech no more than a hoarse whisper. "Anna?"

"Hm?"

"Can I… Can I take you to my room?"

"Why?" Anna grabbed a nearby towel, wrapping it over herself and then taking another to her damp hair.

"Because you deserve a bed. You deserve for someone to make you melt on a bed instead of just taking you against a wall like a horny teenager."

"Then I should say your teenage years were different than mine because none of the men I knew as teenagers could even lift me to a wall much less bring me to orgasm there."

"That's…" John held her wrist, taking the towel she offered with his other hand. "That's not what I meant."

"I know." Anna finished drying her hair and left the towel to hang dry on a rack there. "And I think I'd like to take you up on your offer."

"I've even got… other protection."

"My pill's pretty effective." Anna shrugged, "But it's your choice and I respect if you want to make extra sure you don't end up an unintended father."

"If I end up a father it'll be intended." John wrapped the towel around his waist. "Not that I ever had the chance but-"

"I'm sure a man like you'll get the chance." Anna took his hand, squeezing his fingers in hers. "Just not now and probably not with me."

"Probably not." John paused, Anna's hand leaving his and he blinked as she walked out of the room. "Wait, why not?"

"Well," Anna stopped in the hall, adjusting the towel wrapped over her. "Firstly you live in Ireland and I live here. Second, we barely know each other. Third… it's a little odd to impregnate the help in this generation."

"It's not like it'd be without your consent." John stopped himself, "I'm sorry… this conversations' gone round the bend and I'm…"

"I'm flattered, Mr. Bates, I really am." Anna came over to him, running a hand over his cheek, "But I think we should just have the fun we're planning on having right now and let the future be what it is."

"Yes," john nodded, "That's a great idea."

"Good." Anna tugged on his hand, "I believe you promised me a bed."

They worked their way up to his room, exchanging kisses on the way, and John even managed to catch her off guard with a lift of her towel to run a hand up her leg. She stopped and John ran a finger along her folds before Anna rested back against his chest. He shifted against her, pushing the material of her towel up more so she could feel his arousal against her ass. Anna just pushed back against it and forced John to get them both into his room.

She giggled at him until he trapped her in his arms to kiss over her. Her hand splayed at his chest and the other held his cheek to keep them close as John slipped his towel loose to fling over a chair on the other side of the room. With steady steps he maneuvered Anna close the bed and tugged her towel loose to drop onto the floor.

John pulled away from the kiss and leaned Anna back so her feet were still on the floor but the rest of her spread out on the bed. He lowered himself over her, running his hands through her drying hair to spread it around her head before their lips met again. Anna held to him, bringing a leg up to his hip as John glided over her. But instead of positioning himself, John broke the kiss to work lower over Anna's body.

He started at her neck, leaving no patch of skin unkissed or unlicked, and then took time to stroke and kiss over each of her shoulders. His hands skimmed her body, running up each appendage and massaging where she tensed or tickled where she tried to move away. All the while he continued moving lower with his mouth until he stopped at her breasts.

Each received the attentions of his mouth and his hands. Kneading the skin there, kissing over it, nipping to leave red marks, and then sucking at her skin before taking each nipple into his mouth. Anna writhed under him, her fingers finding their familiar positions in his hair or at his shoulders. Her feet traced up his thighs and tried to drag him closer but John ignored those as he relished in the dig of her fingers in his sides.

His kisses continued to her stomach, her hips and then to the crux of her thighs. He spread her legs carefully, hands stroking and soothing over her thighs and calves before taking both feet into a temporary massage that relaxed Anna with an audible sigh. And when she relaxed into the blankets, he kissed at her clit.

She tried to buck off the bed but John sucked the nerves into his mouth and swirled his fingers over the skin at the inside of her thighs to spread her folds. He licked over them, sucking and caressing them with all the care of a starving man. Swift movements interchanged with slower motions left Anna crying out and writhing on the bed until John risked his tongue lower.

The shriek filled his ears and echoed off the walls. John smiled, continuing his assault between thumb and fingers until he sank two fingers into her and returned to her delicate nerves. Nerves he sucked and rubbed until Anna came crying his name. He massaged her down from her high and kissed back up her body.

Even with as limp as she was, Anna managed to pull his mouth to hers and took control of his tongue. John set his knees on either side of her hips and Anna, keeping one hand at the back of his neck to continue their kiss, slid up the bed to give them more room. Once settled, she spread her legs and let the kiss break.

"Please don't stop."

John positioned himself between her legs, lifting one to his hip, and drove forward. Anna shut her eyes, pressing her head hard enough into the pillow to arch her neck, and John sank deeper when she raised her hips in the same motion. He groaned and moved.

Every strike, with as sensitive as she was, tightened her like a bow string until all Anna could do was gasp out unintelligible words. John buried his head near her shoulder, flexing his hips with each rock of hers, and trying to drive as deeply as he could. Subtle adjustments had him striking where she needed him, both inside and out, and soon Anna let out her finish again. John followed the cue and sped up until his frenetic pace ended in a burst of effort.

He caught himself on one hand and then rolled to the side. His side hit the bed and he rolled to stare up at the ceiling as his chest expanded to try and get air. Fingers intertwined with his and John turned enough to see Anna leaning over slightly so she could stare at him in the darkness of the room.

"I'd really enjoy if we ever get a chance to do that again."

"I think I'll need a bit." John took another deep breath and then jumped as Anna's fingers teased over his abdomen and then circled lower.

"I don't think you'll need that long."